On Giuliani P22,000/seat
VIDEO: http://www.inquirer.net/vdo/player.php?vid=1301
MANILA,
Philippines — They are both lawyers. They were both mayors who cleaned
up their dirty cities. They both led their constituents during a
disaster. And they both have RG for initials. All this Senator Richard
Gordon pointed out but said that he might be better than former New
York City mayor Rudy Giuliani.
"All I am saying is, we have
comparative accomplishments. Pero baka naman mas marami tayong krisis
na nilagpasan at pinagtagumpayan…RG siya, Rudy Giuliani, Italyano iyan
eh. Ako Richard Gordon, Amerikano, Gordon. Pero pinili ko maging
Pilipino pero siya pinili niya maging Amerikano [But maybe we survived
and overcame more crises…He's RG, Rudy Giuliani, an Italian. I am
Richard Gordon, American. But I chose to be Filipino, while he chose to
be an American]," he told reporters.
Giuliani spoke before
government and corporate VIPs at the Makati Shangri-La Hotel Tuesday
and called for transparency in government. He said Filipinos should
elect someone they could trust.
But Gordon said paying a hefty price to hear Giuliani speak did not make sense because the Philippines has a lot of heroes.
"Bakit
tayo magbabayad ng $22,000 per seat? Marami tayong bayani dito, mga
lider na subok sa crisis [Why pay $22,000 per seat? We have a lot of
heroes here, leaders who are tested by crises]," he said.
Gordon
said that while he admired Giuliani for his composure and leadership
during the 9/11 terror attacks in New York, the senator pointed out
that he handled more disasters — the Pinatubo eruption, the departure
of the Americans from the former Subic Naval Base, and even the Ormoc,
Leyte flashfloods.
"Bilib ako kay Giuliani at that particular
moment in time nuong nagging mayor siya at nuong tinamaan ng 9/11 ang
New York. Magaling talaga siya [I admired Giuliani at the particular
moment when he was mayor and New York was hit by 9/11. He's really
good]…I can understand where he’s coming from," he said.
But
Gordon reiterated that he has accomplished more, enumerating them thus:
"Lahat ng disaster napuntahan ko. Napaganda natin iyong base, tinanggal
naman tayo. Nagbakasyon tayo, nagturismo tayo, umangat ang turismo. WOW
Philippines, Intramuros, lahat sumikat. Naging presidente tayo ng
international organization ng tourism, PATA. Umalis ako sa turismo,
nilagay ako sa Senado at Red Cross [I have gone to all disasters. We
were able to improve the base, although we were removed there. We went
on vacation, we went into tourism and tourism improved. WOW Philippines
and Intramuros, all became popular. We became president of the Pacific
Asia Travel Association. After tourism, I joined the Senate and the Red
Cross]."
Boasting of his achievements, the president of the
Philippine National ed Cross said the PNRC now has a fire brigade with
10 fire trucks and would soon have ambulances and rescue trucks.
Gordon says he’s better than Giuliani
By Veronica Uy
INQUIRER.net
First Posted 16:30:00 07/31/2008
